New NJ Bill Would Prompt PennEast Pipeline Review

PRINCETON, NJ — Two members of Congress from New Jersey have introduced a bill to improve the review process of proposed pipeline projects. This comes after the Biden administration recently backed the PennEast Pipeline in a Supreme Court case.

Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman (D- Mercer) and Tom Malinowski (D-Hunterdon) on Wednesday announced the introduction of the Safe and Accountable Federal Energy Review for Pipelines Act of 2021.

According to Watson Coleman and Malinowski, the U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) has for years relied on outdated private agreements to determine whether to approve future natural gas pipelines.

“The current process for pipeline approval lacks the necessary oversight to protect our natural environment and ensure future generations can live on a safe and clean planet,” Watson Coleman said in a statement.

“The SAFER Pipelines Act will ensure the approval of future pipelines consider existing capacity as well as closely monitor the environmental impacts of new construction.”

Watson Coleman is a member of the Energy and Water Development Subcommittee of the House Appropriations Committee.

Earlier this month, Watson Coleman and Malinowski released a statement expressing “disappointment” after the Department of Justice submitted a brief defending PennEast pipeline's efforts to seize New Jersey land for a project.

Read More Here: NJ Representatives Disappointed As Biden Backs PennEast Pipeline

PennEast is planning to build a 120-mile natural gas pipeline from Pennsylvania to New Jersey, cutting through Hunterdon and Mercer Counties.

Malinowski said that the current approval process has “failed landowners in New Jersey.”

“I am proud to partner with Rep. Watson Coleman on the SAFER Pipelines Act, a bill to increase oversight of the approval process and to ensure that the environmental and safety concerns of local communities are properly heard and considered before new pipelines are approved,” he said in a statement.

The SAFER Pipelines Act of 2021 hopes to implement the following reforms:

• Amends the Natural Gas Act to require FERC to conduct an evidentiary hearing and/or a cumulative review of major energy infrastructure projects planned throughout the region, their stated purposes, and necessity relative to potential impacts on state and regional energy goals prior to approving a certificate for any proposed pipeline expansion project.
• Requires FERC to undertake additional analysis to determine potential impacts from other pipelines within the same state as well as those within 100 miles of a proposed project.
• Requires FERC to monitor all approved and constructed projects for five years to confirm that the environmental impacts have in fact been mitigated per the terms of the certificate of approval.